Fanciful button and method of making the same



Sept. 1; 1931. 1.. R. CARLEY ET AL 1,821,615

FANCIFUL BUTTON AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME Filed Feb. 24, 1951 15Inueni'orau' LeonarydR. Carlqy, Z V\, a Zi'er 7T Patented Sept. 1, g1931 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE LEONARD R. OAKLEY, or warmvrown, AmWALTER T. ABEL, or ATERVILLE, CON- NEcrIcU'r, ASSIGNOR-S TO THE PATENTBUTTON COMPANY, or WATERBURY, CONNECTICUT, A CORPORATION or CONNECTICUTFANOIFUL BUTTON AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME Application filed February24, 1931. Serial No. 518,010.

Our invention relates to new and useful improvements in buttons and themethod of making the same, and has for an object to produce a buttonhaving an ornamented cap and an irregular and fanciful outer peripheraledge.

Heretofore, it has been found necessary, in making buttons with anirregular edge or outline, to have a cut and drawn shell stamped.

go with an irregular punch and dies, and as these dies are relativelyexpensive they add a considerable amountto the cost of the buttons.

The present invention contemplatesa button having an irregular orfanciful peripheral edge and also the method of making the same, andwherein, by the novel formation of the cap and the use of an especiallydesigned body, the parts may beassembled and attached with an ordinaryround closing punch to thus producea button having the appearance of themore expensive. buttons that are I formed with the irregular cut anddrawn shell and stamped with an irregularly-shaped punch .and die. Stillanother object of the invention is to produce a button wherein the outerperipheral edge of the cap or head may be irregular in shape and outlineand of fanciful appearance, which cap is crimped upon a body of socertain formation to thus produce, for instance, a scalloped edge.around the button. This crimping action of the cap on thebody is donewith a regular round punch or closing tool.

Still another objectof the invention is to. produce a button of novelappearance and design that will simulate the appearance of buttons madewith irregular cut dies and, at the same time, may be manufactured in soquantities much more cheaply than where the button is made in theordinary way.

vVith these and other objects in view, the invention consists in certainnew and novel arrangements and combination of parts, as

will be hereinafter more fully described and pointed out in the claims.

Referring now to the drawings, showing a preferred embodiment andseveral modified forms of the invention,

Fig. 1 is a top planview of the cap member enlarged to-emphasize theconfiguration thereof; Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same; Fig. 3 isa cross section of the above; Fig. 4 is a top plan view of one form ofback used;

Fig. 5 is a side elevation thereof; I Fig. 6 is a plan view of theassembly before being crimped down;

Fig. 7 is a similar plan after the crimping operation to finish thebutton;

Fig. 8 is a cross section therethrough;

Fig. 9 is a top plan of a modified form of back showing a serrated orscalloped edge to lit'into or cooperate more closely with the irregularformation of the cap edge;

-Fig. 10 is a plan View of this assembly be fore being crimped down;Fig. 11 is a similar-plan after the crimping operation Fig. 12 is a topplan of still another form of back having a slightly flattened edge tothe flange thereof;

Fig. 13 is a side elevation of the form shown in Fig. 12;

Fig. 14 is a plan view of this form assembled with a cap common to thefirst two forms.

Taking up the construction of the cap 1, which is common to all forms ofthe button shown, it may be of steel, brass, or other relatively thinmaterial and is shell-like in formation, that is, consisting of the topor' surface 2 and the downwardly extending peripheral rim 3.

This cap may have any desirable configuration and, in the presentinstance, is shown with a fanciful four-leaf flower 4. These leaves arealso shown as indented or rounded, as at 5, to thus produce a scallopedeflect about the peripheral edge of the button after the cap iscrimped'in place, as will shortly peripheral edge 7 of the rim 0 of thecap 1 is substantially a circle. In other words, the fanciful designextends not only to the outer peripheral edge of the top surface of thecap to thus produce a scalloped outer peripheral edge but also extendsto certain points over and down into" the depending rim 3 of the cap 1.

As will be shown by stamping the cap in this manner, that is, havingdepressed portions extending even into the downwardly extending rim, itis possible to crimp the cap with the ordinary rounding tool overcertain forms of backs to thus form a button head of'irregularperipheral design without the use of special forms of punches and diesand closing tools, which practice heretofore was common to themanufacture of buttons having an irregularlyshaped periphery.

Referring to Figs. i and 5, there is shown a conventional form of bodyor back 8, though slightly less in diameter, which is provided with theintegral hub, as at 9, which 'hub may or ma not be nnoerforate. l

It is to be understood that the hub or bacl; might be formed for usewith a tack or staple, and it will also be understood that the backmight be of the flexible type, althi'iugh this is not shown in thedrawings, so that the button head may move or swing with relation to thehub of the back or body of the button.

Referring now to Fig. 6, it will be seen that the diameter of the buttonback is less than the diameter ofthe rim 3 of the cap 1, so that whenthe body or back is dropped within the inverted cap, as seen in Fig. 6,there is some little peripheral space 10 between the peripheral edge ofthe back and the peripheral rim 3 of the button cap 1.

Thus, the little indentations 5 that merge with the indentations 6(which are really formed with the one stamping) extend be yond theperipheral edge ofthe back and occupy part of the peripheral space 10before the cap is crimped in place.

To fasten the button cap 1 to the body or back 8, the rim 3 is simplycrimped down on the back with the ordinary round punch (not shown, andthe button will now appear as shown in Fig. 7, that is, the peripheraledge will be irregular or uneven in outline. Thus, it will be seen thatit is not necessary to have a specially-shaped punchor die to form thecrimping or closing of the cap on the body, even though the button isirregular in its peripheral outline.

As shown. in Fig. 8, the hub of the button back or shell might have thelittle anvil or setting die 11 therein to turn the prong of a, tack (notshown), and it may have a further little anvil 12 therein, which is Verycommon to the art.

So far, it will be seen that by using stamped cap with any approveddesign, wherein part of the stamped design runs down into the rim, thatis, below the center line of closing of the cap, and also by using anyform of back wherein the diameter is substantially less than the cap, itis possible to crimp the cap into place with an ordinary round closingtool and still produce a brokenly or irregularly or peripherally shapedbutton head, i f

Referring to a slightly modified form of back, as shown in Fig. 9, itwill be seen that we utilize a back or body that somewhat similar tothat shown in Fig. 5, but in this instance the upper circumferential.edge of the back is cut out, as at 18. In other words, it is slightlyscalloped, as may be seen in Figs. 9 and 10. v

The assembly of this button similar to that just described, that is, thebody or back 8 dropped within the cap 14:, which is identical in allrespects with the cap 1, the scalloped portions 13 overlying the highspots of the depressed insignia 15, while the'resultant points 16between the scallops 13 extend nearly to the inner peripheral wall 17 ofthe cap 14:. l

r The button, as now assembled, is then subjected to a round closing"tool and the rim of the cap crimp-ed down, as at 18, on the surfaceofthe body or back S,.which will be readily understood.

I Still a third way of forming this button is to provide a form of back20 which is similar to the back or body 8, but the upstanding flange 2iaround the peripheral edge is flattened out slightly, as at 22, andrelatively thin. This back is then dropped into a cap 23 similar in allrespects to the cap 1, and the button now subjected to the ordinaryroundclosing tool, as the diameter of the button be h is also slightlyless than the diameter of the button cap and of relatively thinmaterial. The-cap may be criinped into place in the same manner with theconventional round closing tool.

From the foregoing, it wil be seen that by forming the cap as heretoforedescribed, that is, with the indentations or depressions extending downinto the rim of the cap and by using a tack with a smaller diameter, orby using a back with a scalloped edge or a back of less diameter and aslightly protruding thin peripheral edge, an irregularly-outlined buttonmay be formed without the use of special and expensive dies and toolsand still simulate the appearance of buttons of a similar type but whichare much more costly.

It will be understood that buttons with caps of other irregular designsor shapes may be made in the same manner, while the hubs of the backsmay be of any rigid type do sired, that is, to be used with a staple ortack and perforate or inuierforate. or the flexible type hub may equallywell be used.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and desire tosecure by Let- .ters Patent is:

-. stamped therein and said indentations extending down into the rim ofthe cap and substantially to the lower edge thereof, a button back ofless diameter than the diameter of the cap to provide a marginal recessbetween the "-uttcn back and circular rim of the button cap, and the rimof the cap closed on the button back and forming a button of irregularoutline around its upper peripheral edge.

3. A button comprising a cap in the form of a shell, said shell havingstamped'andentations formed on its upper surface and extending down intothe rim thereof, a button back having its peripheral edge scalloped tooverlie the indentations about the peripheral :dge of the cap, and therim of the cap shell crimped over the button back to thus form a buttonhead the periphery of which is irregular in outline.

4. A button cap in the form of a shell, the top surface thereof havingstamped indentations, and the stamped indentations extending down intothe rim of the shell.

5. A button cap comprising a top and a downwardly extending peripheralrim, indentations formed in the top surface and extending down into therim, and the peripheral edge of the rim being substantially circular inoutline.

6. A button cap in the form of a shell, the top of said cap and therimthereof having indentations merging with each other whereby when therim is pressed down towards the top it will provide a cap of irregularperipheral outline.

7. A button including a shell back having an integral hub and anupstanding outward peripheral flange, and the peripheral flange beingscalloped and the indentations of the scallops extending downwardlytowards the hub.

8. A button including a shell back having an integral hub and anupwardly flared rim, and said rim being cut out about its periphery andthe cut-out portions extending downwardly into the flared rim towardsthe hub.

9. A button comprising a cap in the form of a shell, the cap havingindentations in its top surface which extenddown into the rim of thecap, a button back having a marginal relatively thin rim, and the backbeing of less diameter than the cap and fitting within the'cap, and therim of the cap secured over the said marginal rim.

10. The method of forming a button having an irregular outer peripheraltop edge which consists in providing a cap in the form of a shell,stamping indentations in the cap, which indentations extend into the rimthereof. placing a button back of substantially less diameter than thecap in the cap,

and closing the rim of the cap about the back with a round closing tool.

11. The method of forming a button having an irregular outer peripheraledge which consists in stamping out a circular cap in the form of ashell, stamping indentations within the cap, some ofwhich indentationseX- tend down into the rim of the cap, placing a button back ofsubstantially less diameter than the cap within said cap, and crimpingthe rim of the cap about said back.

12. The method of forming a fanciful button which consists of stampingout a cap substantially circular in outline which is provided with a rimextending at right angles thereto, pressing indentations into the capwhich extend down into the rim thereof, placing a button back within thecap whose peripheral outline is also irregular, and crimping the rim ofthe cap on the irregular outlined button back. 7

In testimony whereof we aflix our signatures.

' LEONARD R. CARLEY.

WALTER T. ABEL.

